murray



A. E. MURRAY Feb. 7, 1956 PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING SHOES AND PRODUCTS THEREOF Filed July 2, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR Jllan E. Murray ATTORNEY Feb. 7, 1956 A. E. MURRAY 2,733,522

PROCESS OF MANUFACTURING SHOES AND PRODUCTS THEREOF' Filed July 2, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 6 61E-:1. 5. 7 15g. a.

44 7 lNvENToR United States Patent O PROCESS F MANUFACTURING SHOS AND PRODUCTS THEREOF Alan E. Murray, New York, N. Y.

Application .Iuly 2, 1952, Serial No. 296,826

Claims. (Cl. B16-8.5)

My invention relates particularly to methods whereby shoes may be made of an effective character and which conform to the different contours of the feet, or to casts of the feet, of the wearer and in such a manner that the soft tissues of the feet will not be subjected by the shoes thus made to the undesirable pressures of the usual types of footwear.

An object of my invention is to provide footwear of the above character which may be made expeditiously and at a comparatively low cost so as to be rendered thereby available for wear universally and which, nevertheless, are so constructed as to conform to the contours of the feet of the particular wearer and thus avoid undue localized pressures on the feet, which have hitherto been the source ofmaladjustments and malformations of the feet, resulting often in serious injury. A further object is to provide a process whereby the shoes can be made readily on the feet, although as above stated they may be made instead on casts of the feet of the wearer, and they can even be self-made if desired. The process, furthermore, provides a procedure in accordance with which, in effect, the shape of the particular foot, by which I mean to include either the foot itself or a cast thereof, designs or produces the shape of the footwear to be worn thereby, both in the conformation of the upper as well as the conformation of the lower part of the shoe on which the foot is supported, and the conformation of which is largely determined by the conforming upper. Again, a further object is to conduct the process in such a manner that the curvatures of the upper and lower supporting portions of the shoe become coordinated during the formation of the shoe so as to blend, respectively, into one another while the materials have not yet set. In this manner shoes are obtained, by means of the plastic materials which, when set, have an effective solid form accurately following the individual contours of the different upper and lower portions of the feet, as expressed in the conformations of the plastic materials formed hydraulically while the plastic materials are mobile and before becoming set, the process being such as preferably to produce, in the hydraulic plastic materials, the dynamic shape of the foot while in use before they have reached the stage of solidiication into the set position. Further objects of my invention will appear from the detailed description of the same hereinafter.

While my invention is capable of embodiment in many different forms, for the purpose of illustration I have shown and described three examples of footwear and processes of making them in accordance with my invention, in the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a first form of shoe made in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a second form of shoe made hereby;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a third form of shoe made in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 4 is a plan View of a sheet of platform material out of which the supporting platform, following the outline of the foot, is cut as hereinafter described;

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Fig. 5 is a plan view of a sheet of monks cloth from which a cover, to be fastened to the said platform, is cut out;

Fig. 6 is a plan view of a pattern cut out of a sheet of paper, which has the shape of the succession of cover pieces to be applied to the foot, as hereinafter described;

Fig. 7 is a plan View of a foot, or cast thereof, showing a rst cover piece of monks cloth as applied over the top of the foot and which'has the shape of the pattern shown in Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a side View of the foot, or cast thereof, showing applied thereto a heel piece as Well as the lirst and second cover pieces, the second cover piece having been cut off;

Fig. 9 is a plan View of the foot as shown in Fig. 8, but with the second cover piece cut out down to the line shown in Fig. 8, to form a reinforcing layer;

Fig. l0 is a fragmental section, enlarged, of the shoe shown in Fig. 2, showing the marginal cover piece which is secured to the mosaic piece edges, the platform and the sole of the shoe; and

Fig. l1 is a side elevation broken away to show the plaster of Paris filling introduced into the shoe, shown in Fig. 3, and as separated into a front portion and a heel portion for the separate segmental removal thereof, when the plaster of Paris filling has hardened.

In the drawings, referring first to the three types of shoes shown in Figs. l, 2 and 3, I provide a rectangular piece of platform material 1 which may be of any desired impressionable absorbent material. However, for this purpose I prefer a sheet of thick felt, generally from one quarter to one half inch thick, although it may be thinner or thicker if desired. The felt may be made of many different kinds of material, as for instance matted or woven fibrous materials such as wool, hair, jute, cotton, linen, Spanish moss or any synthetic or artificially processed materials or mixtures thereof. The materials used are such as to be impressionable and absorbtive to latex, that is to say any form of pre-vulcanized or selfvulcanizing water suspension, generally containing sulfur, of some form of rubber, natural or artificial or synthetic. For this purpose I preferably utilize a latex made of artificial rubber known as neoprene Also, in carrying out the process I prefer to use a thick latex as well as a thin latex, which may be, for example, of the character set forth in any of my Letters Patent No. 2,568,291 upon Process of Making Shoes, granted September 18, 1951,

or No. 2,396,926 upon Process of Shoemaking, granted March 19, 1946, or No. 2,332,000 upon Method of Manufactnring Shoes, granted October 19, 1943, and referred to therein as thick latex and thin latex.

inasmuch as the two shoes for the individual wearer are generally made in substantially the same way, I shall only describe in detail the making of the shoe for one foot, by way of example. For this purpose, the wearer for whom the shoes are to be made is preferably seated on a low chair or box, or where the shoes are to be selfmade by the wearer. The foot is then rested on the rectangle of the platform material 1 which, for convenience, will hereafter be generally referred to as felt A pencil line 2 is then drawn thereon around the margin of the foot with the pencil held vertically, ordinarily. However, opposite the instep, in the case of a foot having a strong or high arch, the pencil is inclined inwardly somewhat beneath the foot to produce a modified line 3, and in case the particular foot has a low or weak arch the pencil will be inclined outwardly away from the foot to produce a modified line 4. Thereupon, the felt is cut out around the said line 2, modified as at 3 or as at 4, cutting vertically through the said material 1. This provides a platform 5. Now, I place the platform 5 on the top of a platform cover 6 of monks cloth, as shown in Fig. 5, and cut therefrom a platform cover piece 7 which is so as to penetrate the same somewhat, that is to say to a point about one half way through the thickness of the felt.V Next, I apply some of the thick latex on top of Vbeen applied. I now dust what is to be the underside of theL cover piece 7 with plaster of Paris so as tc expedite somewhat the setting of the'latex on platform S, and apply the dusted underside of said cover piece 7 to the top, that is to say the latex-coated surface, of the felt 5 and pat the cover 7 down thereon. Then, the bottom surface, which is the uncoated surface, and edges or periphery of the felt 5 should be wet with the thin latex followed by the thick latex in the same way, after which the margin of the cover piece 7 is turned over the said edges of the felt 5 onto the lowermost periphery of the platform, front tucks 8 and rear tucks 9 being made in the cover 7 and then cut off to eliminate the tucks of the kfabric and to make abutting joints below the uppermost margin of the felt 5. Also, preferably, through not neccssarily, the cover piece 7 is turned over the bottom of the felt platform 5 to increase the bonding of the sole to the wall of the shoe. The cover piece 7 may, however, be trimmed olf flush with the lowerrnost edge of the felt S.

Now, while the wearer sits on the chair or box above referred to, the foot is rested on the felt 5 carrying thereon the cover piece 7 while the latex is still Wet and has not yet set, although it may have started to gel. The foot, thus, has the weight of the leg resting thereon, so that the platform will begin to take the shape of the contours of the underpart of the foot. A rectangular heel piece of monks cloth 1i? is now made about four inches square, which is then wet on the back side, not next to -the foot, with the thick latex so that pinpoints of the latex will go through the cloth to reach the foot to which the heel piece is now applied so as to cause the same to adhere slightly to the surface of the foot. The heel piece it) is so placed that the lower edge thereof comes down to where the foot reaches the top of the cover piece 7, any

vexcess of the heel piece 10 being located at the top thereof. Thereupon, with a fine artists brush, the exposed part of the cover piece 7 is wet on the top thereof with the thick latex all around from the upper margin thereof inwardly towards the foot, but without touching the foot any more than cannot be avoided. A lirst foot cover piece 11, having the shape of a paper pattern 12 and with a longitudinal slit, as shown in Fig. 6, to receive the ankle 14, is made out of monks cloth and powdered underneath with talcum powder, after which the cover piece 11 is placed over the foot with the ankle 14 passing through the said slit. Then the said cover piece 11, with the aid of the lingers and a spatula or table knife, is pushed in all around over the edge of the foot, making at the back, over the heel piece 16, a single abutted joint 13, to the left of the heel center, by cutting o any excess fabric.

lThe lower edge of the first cover piece 11 is now cut otf at 15 all around the upper edge of the platform. On this iirst cover piece 11, I now make a pencil line 16 along approximately the under-cnt line of the foot, but somewhat higher than said line at the heel and somewhat higher at the instep, and also extending at 17 over the tops of the toes to form, in effect, a box portion 18 for the toes. The entire surface below the said line 16 is now well wet-in with thick latex. A second foot cover piece 19 of monks cloth, having the same shape as the pattern 12, is cut out and, after having been dusted underneath with plaster of Paris, is applied over the top of the shoe to which it adheres below the said line 16, adherence being assured by pressing against the same all around the foot with the fingers and the spatula and so that at the rear of the shoe there is made an abutting Vthat surface of the platform 5 to which the thin latex has fanitmsaaY f joint 20 to the right of the heel center. The second cover piece 19 is now trimmed olf along the line 16 leaving on the shoe the lower portion thereof which acts as a reinforcing for the shoe and this reinforcing is trimmed of, also, at the upper edge of the platform.

From this point the procedures for making the said rst, second and third forms of the shoe vary from one another somewhat.

For completing the rst form of the shoe shown in Fig. l, there is now made a third foot cover piece 21 of terry cloth which is also of the same shape as the pattern 12. This cover piece 21 is dipped in the thin latex so as to be saturated thereby. The cover piece 21, well saturated, should be wrung out to the point where there is no longer any dripping of the liquid therefrom. In this instance, if desired, the latex for the cover piece 21 may have added thereto a water soluble dye of any desired kind, such as an aniline dye or pigment, of any desired color. This may be added in any desired proportion, for instance one teaspoon of the dyestuff to a cup of the thin latex, and then the two are thoroughly mixed together by stirring. The entire top of the rst and second cover pieces 11 and 19 on the foot are now made wet with thick latex and then dusted over with plaster of Paris. This third cover piece 21 is now applied over the dusted first and second cover pieces and is worked in all around the shoe with the lingers and -a spatula so as to mold the same into all the recesses.

This cover piece 21 is provided with an abutting joint 22 over the center line of the heel. As the result of working in this cover piece `21, the nap thereof may have become pressed down in some places, and to remove any lack of uniformity in the nap of the terry cloth a stencil brush or stiif hair brush is used to bring up the nap uniformly all over the shoe. An electric fan may be applied to the shoe for tive to ten minutes, for example, to cause the materials to gel. Whereupon, the foot and shoe are lifted up and the cover piece 21 trimmed off all around the lower edge of the cover piece 7.

Now, with a scissors, a straight slit 23 is made down the `front of the shoe, preferably somewhat to one side thereof. With the aid of a spatula inserted between the shoe and the foot the shoe is then freed from the foot by holding the foot down with the spatula inside the shoe. The foot is now lifted out of the shoe and the edges of the slit 23 are stuck together with thick latex to hold the soft materials in shape. The shoe can now be placed under an electric fan for two or three hours, whereupon vrtially ll the sheet of absorbent impressionable material 5, which constitutes the platform, or absorb into it a quantity of latex of any desired concentration. Preferably a thin latex is utilized for this purpose and this may even be thinner than the thin latex above referred to, which especially thin latex is made, for instance, by adding an equal quantity of distilled water to the thin latex above referred to, to facilitate the absorption. This latex may be applied by a brush or otherwise and absorbed into the platform, which is preferably cut out previous to the application of said latex, at any time previous to making a foot-impression therein as herein referred to. But, for example, as one alternate way of carrying out the absorption, I place the thus far completed shoe, with the felt 5 directed downwardly, into a pan for ve or ten minutes, containing a shallow layer of the thick latex, preferably three eighths of an inch deep Aor up to a point equal to about one half the depth of back `and forth slightly in the, liquid, the shoeat this stage being quite flat at the bottom thereof. The felt platform 5, by this immersion, becomes quite wet throughout with the latex and at theend of said period of ve to ten minutes the shoe is lifted out of the pan with the operators hand located inside the shoe so that the excess liquid can drip olf` Immediately thereafter `I apply threerlayers of terry cloth soling 23a, such for example as that shown and described in detail in my Patent No. 2,448,455 upon Laminated Pile Fabric Shoe Sole, granted August 31, 1948. `Now, the shoe is again placed under an electric fan for about twelve hours, while being supported, for instance,-on a sheet of paper or any other desirable support. Byrthis time the outside of the shoe will have become rather dry but not entirely set andthe felt platform 5 will still be very wet, containing the body of hydraulic liquid. The upper edges of the shoe are now trimmed off and the slit 23 is preferably enlarged by cutting oif a one quarter inch margin all around the V formed by the slit'23. Eyelets 24 are made around` the margin of the slitand a lacing 25 is introduced therein. Grommets 26 may be introduced vin the eyelets if desired.

The shoe, the materials of which even in the upper and in the platform still are formable and notV entirely set,.is now walked in. As a result the shoe changes from having a flat underneath surface, so as to acquire an appreciable rocker shape, an arch 27 of the shoe beneath the instep becomes thicker due to larch lifting, a pyramid 28 rises under the toes, with a pocket 29 under each toe with webs between the toes, a rounded hollow pocket or depression 30 formsunder the ball of the foot, a hollow depression 31 forms under the heel and thewalls of the shoe coalesce with and become rounded into the arch and depression contours 27, 30 of the impregnated felt platform 5, which carries therein the curvatures introduced by walking thereonso as to register and retain the dynamic shape of the foot. Thus, the foot has, itself, designed and shaped the shoe hydraulically into the dynamic shape of the foot acquired by the shoe before the plastic materials have set. It will be understood that the shoe will cure before becoming completely set, generally over a period of at least two or three days, and which may even amount to about seven days, by the end of which` period substantially all the water'will have become eliminated.. There may now be introduced through the sole Vof the shoe in any desired Way'a soft ilexible metallic conductor 32to eliminate .any heating effects in the shoe. Because there is no outside leather on this form of shoe it is quite elastic and stretchable and holes are not desired, as there are little if any heating effects.

In order to complete the second and third forms of the shoe, as shown in FigsrZ and 3 respectively, the procedure is modified somewhat after the second cover piece 19`has beenapplied and trimmed off, inasmuchas both of these. types of shoes areadapted to be provided with an outercoveringof leather. In thecase of both of the second and third types of vshoe a third layer of monks cloth 33 of the same shape as the pattern 12 is applied over the first and second cover pieces 11 and 19 after the latter has been cut off along the line 16, as above described, and after the said cover pieces 11 and i9 have had applied thereto the thick latex, also after the undersurface of the third cover piece 33 has been dusted with plaster of Paris. This third monks cloth cover piece 33 is now pressed down with the fingers and the spatula all over the shoe in a similar way. An electric fan is now applied thereto for a few minutes. It will thus be understood that the upper part of the shoe has now two layers of monks cloth 11 and 33 and the lower part of the shoe has three layers of monks cloth 11, 19 and 33. At this point the slit 23 is now made in the shoe, the foot is removed therefrom and the two edges of the slit 23 are stuck together, as above described.

From this point, the making of the second type of shoe,

, fa, shown in Fig'. 2, whichhas'a mosaicleathe'router surface, varies somewhat from-the'making'ofithe thirdrtype of shoe, shown in Fig. 3, which vhas a large leather cover piece applied thereto. Y

For the secondtype of shoe, the shoe is then dried for several hours under a fan but without 'thev material becoming entirely set and the felt platform 5 is soaked in the latex located in a pan, as described above. lThere is now secured to the'shoe a sole 34comprisingpreferably only one layer of terry cloth, made -as inaccordance with the said Patent No. 2,448,455. Theupper edge of the shoe is also trimmed off. `Theslit 23 is madetherein and a one quarter inch margin trimmed olf aroundV the same. However, before any eyelets are introduced around-the margin of the slit 23, leather or other patches or Vpieces 35 will be applied andttedv together all overthe surface of the shoe. These patches 3.5'may belof any desired uniform shape but preferably are hexagonal and where there is any lack of it betweenthe same, any desired Kirregular cut-out inserts 36 and 37 may be made to `fll in between the pieces 35, after the V latter have been'applied all over theshoe. Preferably, the patches 35 are ap plied by beginning to apply them on a vertical line thereof extending along the'central ridge lineA 38 ofthe shoe. These patches 35 can be turned over the margin of the slit 23 and over the top edge of the shoe;` They can, also, if desired, be folded somewhat into marginal horizontal positions 39, over the horizontal portion ofthe platform cover piece 7. Eyelets 40 may be introduced around the slit to receive lacings 41 therein, but no grommets' are necessary in this instance. It will be understood, `of course, that these pieces 35 may be of natural` orartificial leather or even of any plastic or composition material. The sole 34 and the monks cloth 7' can now be covered with a strip 42 of terry cloth about one inch wide, dipped in the thin latex and applied all around the lower edges of the shoe, as shown in Fig. l0, so as to cover the lower margins 39 of the pieces 3S.` Then `there are applied two more layers of terry cloth soling43 and 44tin the same manner as described in said Patent No. 2,448,455, after any lower margin of the-strip 42has Vbeen trimmed olf.l The shoe is now walked in as previously described, to produce the underneath rocker shape, with results described above. Any excessfof theirubber remaining on the outside of the'shoecan now be-removed with a red rubber eraser or by applying a rotary bristle brush. Any excess of rubber inside the shoe can also becleaned out similarly with the rotary bristle brush.v This shoe also remains stretchable and ,elastic because of the joints between the leather pieces 35, which also permit heat transference.

For completing the third type of shoe,shown in Fig. 3. the shoe, having the third monks cloth cover piece 33 thereon, is then walked in fora few steps before taking the foot out of the shoe. Thereupon, theslit 23 is made in the shoe and the foot removed therefrom, and the edges of the slit are stuck together, as before described. Thereupon, I fill the shoe with, a temporary filling such as shreaded paper or tissue paper or soft sawdust so las to act as a supporting reinforcement temporarily, to'maintain the shape of the shoe upper. Also,'I prepare a basin of plaster of Paris and water, having a consistency of'soft mud. While the shoe is resting on the table, for example, I then dust a little talcum powder all over the shoe, and with a spatula the plaster of Paris is buttered all over the shoe on the outside thereof to form another layer 45 having a thickness of about one quarter to one half inch. This is allowed to harden for about a half hour. Then the shoe is turned over up-side-down with the shoe resting on the palm of the hand of the operator, whereupon the bottom of the shoe is buttered in the same way to form a plaster layer 46. The plaster 46 is allowed to harden for about one quarter to one half hour in this upside-down position. The shoe is then turned back into its upright position and all of the filling of paper or sawdust is removed. The inside of the shoe is then dusted Vwith-talcum powder and the shoe is poured substantially ,full ofthe plaster of Paris mud which, Vbefore becoming leather with latex and .applying the same as described in my Letters Patent No. 2,493,310 upon Process of Making Form-Retaining Materials and Products Thereof,

granted January 2,`.1950, or No. 2,568,291 upon Process of VMaking Shoes, granted September 18, 1951, or in any other desired. way. This, also,-provides a cofferdam in which is confined the absorbent felt platform 5. Accordingly, the shoe is now allowed to rest in a pan carrying a shallow layer. of latex, as above described, so as to absorb Vthe same throughout thebody of the felt. A sole comprising three layers 51, 52 and 53 of terry cloth may now be applied, as set forth in my Patent No. 2,448,455 aforesaid, and the shoe may be dried for about twelve hours with the aid of an electric fan. A series of holes 54 can now be punched around the margin of the shoe just above the felt platform 5, and the internal plaster blocks 48 and V49 can be removed separately, being separable along the Vdivision plane 47. If desired, the front portion 49 may be broken into two or more pieces to aid its removal from the shoe.

Now, all the pieces of the internal positive cast 48 and V49 can be reunited, if desired, with the aid of cement, to

form a cast on which to make other shoes in the same manner as hereinabove described or in any other way, for. the saidwearer. The shoe can be cleaned out from the inside with a rotary brush. Now, the shoe is walked in while the at platform still contains the liquid and while wet with the latex contained therein, so that the shoe'thus becomes formed completely while coniined by the foot-conforming upper, as described in detail hereinabove so as to acquire and retain the dynamic shape of the foot as to both the upper and lower portions thereof including the platform, when the hydraulic materials therein have entirely set.

It willbe understood of course that these processes are capable of being carried out on any actual foot shapes of the wearer, as for instance casts conforming to the feet of the wearer or on the wearers feet, although the latter are preferable.

The shoes made in accordance with my invention will be found to have, also, an uniform exterior, particularly as no tucks or cut-outs need be made in making the cover pieces used in making the shoe upper. Also, because ,there is an absence of such tucks, a strong buttress is obtained around the shoe and without the need of applying a filling material thereto.

While I have described my invention above in detail I wish it to be understood that many changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the Same.

I claim:

1. The process of making a foot support which cornprises providing a sheet of felt having the outline of the bottom of a foot, applying a liquid latex so as to absorb it into said sheet, securing a moldable fabric cover to said sheet conforming to the contours of said foot, and making an impression of said foot in said sheet while cold and having still-liquid latex therein.

2. The process of making a foot support which comprises providing a sheet of absorbent impressionable material having the outline of the bottom of a foot, applying a liquid latex so as to absorb it into said sheet, securing a moldable fabric cover to said sheet conforming to the contours of said foot, and making an impression of said foot in said sheet While cold and having still-liquid latex therein, said cover having thereon a mosaic of latex-impregnated intertted leather pieces shaped alike.

3. The process of making a shoe which comprises the utilization of a platform constituting a sheet of absorbent impressionable material having the outline of the bottom of an actual foot, securing a moldable fabric cover to said sheet, conforming the sheet and cover to the contours of the foot, introducing a temporary internal support into the cover, applying an moldable plaster to the outside of the shoe, allowing the plaster to harden, removing the temporary internal support, replacing it with moldable plaster which is then cut transversely into removable portions, allowing the plaster to harden, removing the outside plaster, securing a latex-impregnated leather cover to the outside of the shoe, then removing the said portion of the internal plaster, placing the shoe platform in cold moldable latex so as to absorb the latex in the platform and impressing the foot shape in the platform while containing cold moldable latex.

4. A shoe made of plastic materials that have set, including an upper comprising a woven fabric and latex and including a platform of felt containing absorbed liquid latex, and a sole below the said platform, the upper and platform having the shape and contours of an entire human foot maintained by the latex in the interior of the woven fabric and platform.

5. A shoe made of plastic materials that have set, covered with a latex-impregnated mosaic of interiitting leather pieces, including an upper comprising a woven fabric and latex and including a platform of felt containg absorbed liquid latex, and a sole below the said platform, the upper and platform having the shape and contours of an entire human foot which are maintained by the latex in the interior of the leather, woven fabric and platform.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,930,355 Lettermann Oct. 10, 1933 2,136,815 Forster et al Nov. 15, 1938 2,396,926 Murray Mar. 9, 1946 2,530,737 Sherwin et al Nov. 21, 1950 2,589,241 Galhouse Mar. 18, 1952 

4. A SHOE MADE OF PLASTIC MATERIALS THAT HAVE SET, INCLUDING AN UPPER COMPRISING A WOVEN FABRIC AND LATEX AND INCLUDING A PLATFORM OF FELT CONTAINING ABSORBED LIQUID LATEX, AND A SOLE BELOW THE SAID PLATFORM, THE UPPER AND PLATFORM HAVING THE SHAPE AND CONTOURS OF AN ENTIRE HUMAN FOOT MAINTAINED BY THE LATEX IN THE INTERIOR OF THE WOVEN FABRIC AND PLATFORM. 